The Dragon And The Fairy
by CatNinja0122
Summary: Sequel to Moon Fairy. When Mahpari wakes in a place called the Void of the Afterlife, the decision to come back to life is about as common as seeing a straight circle. When the choice comes upon her, however, what happens when she takes it? And in the background, a new evil has sprung. Can it be defeated? Or will it close the whole world in a pit of eternal suffering? (AU)
1. Chapter 1: Void of the Afterlife

Darkness. Stillness. Complete and total silence. It was all around her. And it was driving her nuts.

Her eyes saw nothing, her ears heard nothing other than her panicked breathing. It felt very cold around her, yet she was not capable of shivering. Even when she tried to, just to see if it were still possible, she could not. That was when she realized something.

She was in a horrifying void.

Mahpari sat up, looking around, trying her best not to freak out. The girl felt as though she were breathing, but no breath came from her mouth or from her nose when she exhaled. Could it be she simply could not feel it? Or was it because of this void?

Whatever it was, Mahpari didn't like it.

"Where am I? In fact..._what_ am I?"

Mahpari's voice echoed softly, as though there were walls surrounding her on all sides. She blinked, then looked around again. Then, she realized she no longer needed to blink. She could feel nothing. And just to prove the fact for herself, Mahpari pinched her cheek.

It didn't even phase her.

"This is insane. I must just be dreaming. Nothing more than a dream."

"Wrong, Mahpari. You're not dreaming. I'm afraid to say that you have died and passed into the Void of the Afterlife."

Mahpari was terror stricken. She couldn't will herself to scream, however, for she no longer had emotions left that would allow her to. Only the regular five senses.

Well, technically four. Her sense of touch had gone out the window.

"Hey, who's out there?" Mahpari called. Her answer was not formed from words. Rather, a bright, vibrant light with a blue tint appeared, and it seemed to be miles and miles away from her. Mahpari tilted her head to the left, trying to make sense of all of this.

The light began to move closer to her. Mahpari was thankful she had no sense of fear left. If she did, she most likely would've been running forever into a pit of nothingness.

Instead, she allowed the light to come closer. But as it began to slowly crawl into view, it turned out that it was not a light. It was a glowing young boy, about her age. Maybe two years older, give or take. As Mahpari began to take a closer look at him, she thought she began to recognize him.

In fact, she did recognize him. And even though it was unnecessary, Mahpari let out a gasp.

Hart Tenjo now floated in front of her.

"Hello, Mahpari," Hart said, smiling and placing a hand in front of her. Mahpari stared at it for a moment, then decided there was no danger. And even if there was, what was the big deal? It couldn't hurt her if she couldn't feel anything. She gingerly touched her hand to his, letting him pull her up. As he did, a vibrant orange aura formed around her, causing her to begin to float as well.

Mahpari stared down at herself curiously for a moment, then looked back up at Hart, gazing into his amber eyes.

"Where did you say we were?"

"The Void of the Afterlife, where spirits are eliminated, sent on to Heaven, or sent on to Hell."

"Do you know what my fate is? Like, where I'm supposed to go?"

Hart shook his head. "Sorry, no. Not until I see how you react to certain things do I know where you're to be sent."

The two children stared at each other, not taking their gazes away whatsoever. Finally, however, Hart gestured with his hand. "Look," he whispered, pointing to his right. Mahpari looked over, seeing nothing but blackness at first.

Soon, in replacement to the blackness, a small portal opened up. Mahpari somehow knew better than to try and go through it. Instead, she watched as an image began to fill the light. It was unclear of what it was for a second, but soon, Mahpari could see everything.

Mizael was standing there, with Kite next to him. Both had tears streaming down their cheeks as they stared at something. In a flash, the portal directed its attention to Alit, Shark, and Gilag, who were managing to keep their tears at bay. With one more flash, it turned to the last thing there. And Mahpari could not believe what that was.

Her older brother, Durbe.

Mahpari touched her fingertips to the portal. "Nii-san," she whispered, listening as the sounds started to enter her ears directly and drown everything else out completely. The gray-haired girl couldn't believe what she was hearing. Durbe was crying! No, not simply crying. He was _sobbing._

"How come he's so upset?" Mahpari asked, not taking her eyes off the portal.

"Because. You're dead, and he could not save you. You jumped in the way to protect him from Vector. As payment, you were forced to give up your mortal soul."

Mahpari felt tears coming to her eyes as the portal closed, her older brother's sobs and whimpers still echoing in her ears. It made no sense to her. Durbe had never once shed a tear before. And she was confident this was a dream. So then why did this seem to sting her heart and cause her to feel the first bit of pain she'd felt since she first came here?

"Hart, I'm not dead. This is only a dream." 

"I wish I could agree. But, I think you have the potential to float on up to Heaven. You should go before the Void decides to keep you here instead."

But Mahpari shook her head. This stunned Hart, for his amber eyes went wide with shock.

"Hart, I don't wanna go anywhere without my nii-san. If there was a way that I could have just one more chance at life...just one more chance to be with him...I'd jump on it in a heartbeat."

"Perhaps there is a way."

Now it was Mahpari's turn to widen her eyes in shock. She blinked, then raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you implying I could go back?"

"Maybe. I could turn you into a Barian."

"What's a Barian?"

"They're mythical creatures. You'd be surprised how many are really on Earth right now wandering around. Some of them are sent there to be guardians. In fact, all of them sent from here are. The ones sent from the other side of the Void, however, are sent only to cause trouble and mayhem."

"There's a whole other side of this place here?"

"Yes. You were very fortunate to land on this one. I guess you truly have a pure heart not to wind up stuck with Don Thousand on the other side."

_Don Thousand,_ Mahpari thought. _Where on Earth have I heard that name before? _

"The people on that side are turned against the ones they love, regardless if they are a nice, peaceful soul. They must have a very pure heart to back that up, like you do," Hart continued. "If I turn you into a Barian, you'll be assigned to protect the ones you love, not harm them."

"I understand."

Hart nodded. "Good. I shall change you and send you back down to Earth for one last shot at life."

Not a word was spoken as Hart's hand lit up a bright blue. Mahpari closed her smokey-gray eyes as he touched her forehead. She could feel a strange pulse of power come from her heart, which she could now feel was beating. Her breath could be felt when she exhaled. And she could feel the hand that touched her forehead now. All of her senses had returned back to her.

A faint glow came from Mahpari's wrist. She looked down, then gasped upon the foreign object that was now attached to it. It appeared to be a bracelet made completely out of stone, with a single gem in the center.

Hart seemed to realize the confusion from the girl in front of him. He smiled, then took her hand and held it up to see the object for himself. "This is a Baria Lapis," he explained. "It will allow you to access your full power on Earth in case of an emergency." The boy chuckled, then looked up at her.

Mahpari blinked. She hated being stared at, and a small bit of blush began to form on her pale cheeks. "What?" she asked at last.

"For years now, there has been a prophecy that we knew would one day be fulfilled. A soul would wander here, and she would have such a pure heart and soul that she would be considered the Fairy Protector, a Barian of great light and goodness. There would also be a Dragon Attacker, a Barian of harsh darkness and evil. He would be sent to the other side. It is said they would battle one day, the Fairy and the Dragon, and whoever won the battle would show that that was the side to one day overpower the other," Hart whispered, looking Mahpari in the eye, "and I think the Fairy...may just be you, Mahpari."

"I doubt that highly. But it would be neat."

Hart only chuckled as he opened a portal. He gestured for her to step through, and she did. When he was sure he was alone, he let out a giggle.

"I don't just think you're the Fairy, Mahpari," Hart whispered. "I _know_ you're the Fairy. And I know you'll protect the light of good from the darkness of evil that will come from the Dragon, whoever he may be."


	2. Chapter 2: Returning & Shedding Tears

**Warning: There is a bit of self torture in this chapter. I suggest if that's not your thing you avoid the last few paragraphs of this chapter, okay? You've been warned, so you can't say anything. Fair game. **

XxXxXxXx

Mizael and Kite continued to stare at Durbe from where they stood. The gray-haired soldier still had tears flowing down his cheeks and whimpers involuntarily coming from him. Though he knew it was true, he refused to believe Mahpari was dead.

Some of the tears slid from Durbe's cheeks and splashed onto Mahpari's cold face. Durbe sniffled and cupped his hand around the left side of Mahpari's face, just simply petting her as he held her close. He clenched his eyes shut as he knelt even closer to his little sister.

"Mahpari...you can't be dead, you just can't be," Durbe whispered, gently brushing Mahpari's bangs away in a sidesweep. He kissed her on the forehead, then ran his fingers through her silky gray hair.

Cautiously, Mizael took a few steps forward. He bent down and placed a hand on Durbe's shoulder, but he nudged it away with his head. Mizael felt his eyes droop into a saddened form as he sighed.

"This must be rather painful for you Durbe, but you must try to lighten up. There is no way you will be able to overcome this if you do not try."

Durbe opened his eyes, which drifted over to stare at Mizael. "Lighten up? Overcome this? That's impossible! I just lost my baby sister! There's no way I'll ever be able to cope with all this!" Tears gushed from his eyes as he exclaimed this, causing the others around him to go wide-eyed. Never before had they seen the gray-haired soldier cry like that, let alone cry at all.

A small flash came from Mahpari's body, startling everyone. Durbe blinked away the remainder of his tears, watching as his little sister's body transformed into pink sparkles that flew away with the wind. This baffled them all, for they had never once seen something so strange happen before.

But one of them had a hunch on what it was.

"Was that... sparkles of a Barian?"

All eyes were locked on Kite. He simply stared at where Mahpari had been only seconds ago, ignoring the strange looks he got from everyone around him.

"Barian?" Alit echoed. "What the heck is that?"

"They're mythical creatures. Supposedly, anyway. There have been some cases where people actually turned to sparkles and flew off, just as you've witnessed. They eventually come back as Barians when that happens."

"And how on Earth do you know of this?" Mizael asked, looking Kite in the eye.

"I used to be a major bookworm. Mythology was what I was usually staring at my whole life."

Well, that explained the infinite knowledge of Barians.

"So...so what happens to humans that are turned to Barians?" Durbe asked, not bothering to look up from the ground. "Like...how does it happen?"

"That, I don't know," Kite said. "I never really found that out. But trust me, if Mahpari comes back as a Barian, you'll most likely be able to tell she's her."

"I've done a bit of reading on Barians," Alit peeped. "They have two totally different forms, a Barian Form and a human form. And they have the ability to change whenever they want, wherever they want. But you should be able to tell it's Mahpari by personality, not just by look."

Durbe blinked, then slowly sat all the way up. "I'll be able to tell it's her."

Mizael smiled and extended a hand. When Durbe grabbed it, he hoisted him up, chuckling as he looked down at the gray-haired soldier in front of him. "There is the spirit I know so well. Never giving up. We should go on home, and allow whatever happens to happen. We will find out when it happens, right?"

"Right."

The two of them turned and walked away, Kite following right behind. Alit couldn't make up his mind where he was going to go at first, but when he saw Shark and Gilag starting to walk after Mizael and Durbe, he instantly yelped and tailed after them.

Durbe completely ignored his surroundings. All he could think about was Mahpari.

All he could think about was his little moon fairy.

XxXxXxXx

The breeze blew by softly and gently, making Mahpari's hair whip around slowly in circles. She stood atop the roof of the house her and her older brother shared, simply staring at the sunset as it painted the sky wild, vibrant colors of orange, pink, and scarlet. Mahpari blinked her smokey-gray eyes, then turned around and looked at the road. She spotted six figures slowly heading down it, and she instantly knew who they were.

Durbe, Kite, Alit, Gilag, Shark, and Mizael.

"Nii-san," Mahpari whispered, smiling sweetly. She giggled, then vanished into the house. All was going according to plan so far.

Soon enough, Mahpari could hear the sound of the cabin door being opened, and the six of them walking inside followed by it. She stayed put against the kitchen wall, trying to hear if they were coming near. As soon as she heard one set of footsteps, she vanished again, trying to stay hidden. If she were to get caught, she'd blow her plan to surprise her older brother during the night.

She didn't go far, though. Mahpari appeared on the stairs, straining to hear the voice tied to the footsteps. The gray-haired girl smiled when she recognized the voice and realized it belonged to Alit.

"Let's just chill for a little while. Ya know, watch TV, prank call your neighbors, eat like ten boxes of pizza, that sort of thing," Alit said, opening the fridge and grabbing a soda can. He popped the top on it, took a couple drinks and instantly let out a loud burp. Mahpari had to cover her ears, and she imagined Durbe did as well. After all, the two of them had rather sensitive ears.

"I'll go with the TV and pizza, but we are _not_ pranking my neighbors. I don't think getting involved with the police is going to help me get over my little sister's death," Durbe replied. Mahpari couldn't help but smile. She was actually glad that Durbe was attempting to forget about her, for she did not wish to watch him suffer.

She'd much rather be forgotten if it meant her older brother would be happy.

The TV soon came on, and Mahpari recognized the movie. She giggled quietly, then just sat down on the stair, deciding it would be best if she stayed hidden. After all, if she blew her cover now, she'd freak Durbe out so bad she might actually kill him. If she were to pull this off correctly, she'd have to meet him again in her Barian Form and simply go from there.

That, or stay away completely.

XxXxXxXx

Night fell faster than anyone had anticipated it would. Durbe watched as Alit and Gilag scarfed down five whole pizzas before they eventually crashed on the couch. He sighed, not wanting to clean up the mess and simply left it there instead. He'd take care of it tomorrow.

Mizael and Shark had fallen asleep as well. Shark had fallen asleep on the floor, snoring it up rather quickly, whereas Mizael had zonked out on the couch. His long, blond hair had instantly become a mess after he rolled over about three times.

That left only Kite and Durbe.

The two soldiers said nothing for a little while, only stared intently at the TV. Nothing was really on that they wanted to pay much attention to, but if it meant evading the awkward silence, they were up for it.

"So..."

Kite turned and looked at Durbe. The gray-haired soldier was staring at the floor, his hands clasped together and placed delicately on his lap.

"What?" Kite asked, not taking his gaze off Durbe.

"I'm just curious...how did you and Mahpari become friends?"

"Well...she started talking to me. When Vector had her captured back at his base. It's like she could see right through me, and she knew just what to ask to get me to open up. We finally calmed down and decided we could trust one another. I don't really know how else to explain that."

Durbe chuckled. "Yeah, Mahpari tends to have that effect on people. She knows how to become anyone's friend. Heck, she probably could've befriended Vector had he given her the chance."

"That madman? I doubt it."

"She befriended you, didn't she?"

The two started to laugh. When they finally calmed down, they high-fived one another.

"All right, yeah, I'll admit it. That was a good one," Kite said, letting a yawn escape his lips. Durbe accidentally copied him, shaking himself off a little bit and messing up his hair in the progress.

"You know it was." The gray-haired soldier stretched, then stood up. He still had a bit of pain pulse in his leg whenever he put pressure on it, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been at first. At least now it didn't hurt that much when he walked, even though that was still a limp. "I'm going to bed," Durbe moaned, walking away plaintively.

"Where can I sleep?" Kite asked.

"Your choice man."

"All right."

Durbe watched out of the corner of his eye as Kite leapt onto the recliner, covering himself with the blanket and ending up falling asleep in two seconds flat. The gray-haired soldier continued up the stairs to the room he slept in. Tears began to form in his eyes again, but he quickly wiped them away. "Don't do that," he scolded himself. "Mahpari wouldn't want you crying over her. It's not like you."

But he couldn't help himself. Durbe walked over to his bed, sitting and staring down at himself. He stared at his wrists, then reached into his pocket and grabbed his utility knife, flipping it open. As he forced it to loom over the skin of his wrists, Durbe's hand began to shake, starting to feel uncertain about this.

He didn't care. Especially when the knife went digging into his flesh, creating long, deep gashes on his left wrist. Durbe flinched and whimpered, but he ignored the pain. He was way too depressed to care.

It only took him a matter of seconds, however, to stop.

Durbe's smokey-gray eyes went wide, and he gasped before dropping the knife onto the bed. "What the hell am I doing?" he asked himself, fighting back tears. "This is pure torture. I've gotta stop this before it gets out of hand."

He simply lay in the bed, stashing his knife away and falling asleep in an instant. The sleeves from his shirt covered his wounds, making it appear that nothing had ever happened. And Mahpari, who'd been hiding in the room for three hours, poked up from under the bed to stare at her older brother. She had not noticed the incident that just occurred, nor did she want to know why Durbe had been scolding himself. Instead, she smiled and ran her fingers through Durbe's bangs, making him twitch. A giggle passed through Mahpari's lips.

"Sleep tight, nii-san," Mahpari whispered. "I'll see you tomorrow morning. That, I can promise."

Then she vanished, leaving absolutely no trace she was even there in the first place.


	3. Chapter 3: A Creature Unlike Any Other

The breeze blew Durbe's hair around in circles as he continued to wander throughout the forest near his house. For some reason, he'd woken up at seven-thirty AM, and he had not been able to go back to sleep. He'd gone to the bathroom and fixed his wrist up the best he could, then simply lounged around. Becoming bored rather quickly, he decided to go wander around the forest for a little while.

And apparently, a little while had meant for two hours straight.

He still couldn't believe Mahpari was dead. It just wouldn't leave his mind. No matter what he did, Durbe couldn't get the memory to go away. When he'd first set out that morning, he'd been hoping fresh air would help to uncloud his mind. But it hadn't helped.

If anything, it fogged it up even more than it had been when this all occurred. What was worse was it made the memories of what he'd done to himself last night keep flooding his mind.

A few tears began to trickle down Durbe's cheeks, but he quickly wiped them away. _Stop doing that,_ he scolded himself. _Mahpari wouldn't want you crying over her.__ You know this. Nor would she want to see you suffering because of her death._

The wind picked up for a moment, and then, that was when he saw it. The shadow. It swooped over him, freaking him out slightly, for it was was too big to be a bird. There was no engine sound, so it couldn't be a plane, either.

Then what the heck was it?

Durbe glanced up, looking through the tree leaves as he stared at the figure that cast the rapid flying shadows over him. He raised an eyebrow, very confused. It appeared to be a human with large butterfly wings, but that was impossible!

"What in the world?" Durbe whispered, freezing in his tracks and watching as the figure dove through the leaves. It stopped for only two seconds before jetting off, and for some reason, Durbe began to follow it.

They went through the forest without hitting anything, winding past the trees and not stopping until they reached the clearing in the forest. Durbe slowed down when they got there, for memories of last year came flooding to his mind. When he'd first discovered this clearing, he wasted no time in showing it to Mahpari. She, to say the least, was stunned and very captivated by the beauty in the forest.

Almost exactly as it had been that day, there were tons of wild life in the clearing. Butterflies fluttered their wings as they went from flower to flower, sipping the sweet nectar they loved so much from them. Some of the bees joined them. Birds in the distance chirped a very peaceful melody, and did not stop when they saw the figure Durbe had chased here land on the rock that was in the middle of the clearing. Instead, it appeared they adjusted their melody.

Durbe stood there, frozen. He watched silently as the figure sat down. It was still just a silhouette, but he could still make out the looks of it. He'd been correct when he noticed the wings on it. They were large and frail looking, but they definitely resembled a butterfly. (Have you ever seen those yellow and black butterflies that have those kinda pointed looking wings? Think of wings like that.) The wings folded back gently, and they tucked themselves neatly behind the figure's back as they started to pick some of the flowers that were growing from the moss on the rock.

"Hey..."

The figure turned and looked back at Durbe. It didn't even seem phased that it had just been snuck up on by him. Rather, it seemed thankful he was there. Durbe watched as the figure motioned for him to come closer, and slowly, he did. The gray-haired soldier didn't stop until he was right next to the rock, where he began to take in the details of the figure that was now only a few feet above him.

It turned out the figure was actually female. She was not human. And it showed in many ways. For one thing, she had pure white skin, not anything that a human would have. Orange markings went from the top of her head down until they went right under her eyes, and there were slightly squiggly ones on her cheeks. She did not have a mouth, but she did have a visible nose. It appeared she had shoulder armor, and it went down just past her chest, and she was wearing a faded yellow half-sleeved shirt underneath that. A belt that matched the armor was around her waist, holding up a purple pleated skirt. Her boots went right above her knees, and they were heeled a bit, making it so she would stand about an inch and a half taller.

But what really caught Durbe's attention were the beautiful wings on her back. They resembled that of a butterfly, like he'd noticed already, with orange tips at the ends of each split section. Though they were colored dark purple, they shimmered silver in the light of the sun. She turned to him, her identical smokey-gray eyes piercing into his.

"Whoa. Who are you? In fact..._what_ are you?" Durbe asked, trying not to sound too rude. If this creature was one of those strange ones from folk tales that had great beauty and horrid, evil power, he did not want to anger her.

Instead of angry, however, she looked shocked. Her eyes went wide, and her wings went up just a little bit. They gently went back down, and her eyes returned to normal. "I can't believe you don't recognize me," she said, blinking innocently at Durbe. The voice that came from her seemed extremely familiar to him, but he couldn't place it. Too many other thoughts were flying through his mind at the moment.

"Recognize you?" Durbe echoed. "I don't think I could. You don't look very familiar."

The creature sighed, then patted a seat beside herself. Durbe hesitantly climbed on top of the rock and sat next to her, just looking at her. Now that he could actually take a good look, he could take in the look of her hair. It was a lot like his, but with orange tips on the cat-like spikes, and orange on the very bottom too. Right above the bangs, there was a small, diamond-shaped orange gem. About two inches from each side, there were very small ones that matched it.

Almost like...a crown.

"It's understandable you don't recognize me, Durbe. I've changed. You can tell that by my appearance. But...I think you should be able to see who I really am soon enough. By my actions." She leaned against Durbe, taking one of her large wings and draping it around him. Durbe blinked. Something was extremely familiar to him about this creature...and it was slowly, slowly clicking in his complex mind.

"Sorry," Durbe whispered. "I guess I just have a lot of things going through my mind at the moment."

A giggle came from the creature that was snuggled against him. "That's okay," she said. "I know how much of a dork you can be."

"Yeah, whatever."

The two of them started to laugh. Durbe looked down at the female creature that sat beside him, then smiled. Geez, she was so much like Mahpari. It was unbelievable.

"Hold on a sec," Durbe said, gaining the girl's attention. "Would you at least tell me what you are?"

"I'm a Barian. Someone you once knew who has come back to keep watch over you and the others."

Durbe was stunned. Barians were real! Kite had been correct! Who would've guessed?

Certainly not him.

"Barian? Those are real? Wow." Durbe met eye-to-eye with the Barian next to him, who nodded and giggled.

"We are very real, Durbe. You'd actually be surprised to learn just how many of us are wandering around right now, looking over our family members. Making sure they stay safe. You know, stuff like that."

Upon hearing this, Durbe froze. He blinked, then turned away, wondering just who this Barian was protecting. His smokey-gray eyes didn't bother to look up as he asked the question.

"So, who are you protecting?"

"Me?" the Barian asked. She looked up at Durbe, watching as he nodded. "I'm protecting you and your friends, dork."

Durbe jumped from his spot with a startled yell, hitting the ground rather hard. The female Barian gasped and jumped down next to him, extending a hand and pulling him up when he took it. They once again met eye-to-eye. Durbe watched as the female Barian giggled, backing away from him.

"What was that for?"

"Sorry. It just kinda... startled me."

"That's alright." She looked up at the sky. "Sorry. I need to go. Just remember I'll be watching over you guys, okay?"

Durbe stood and nodded, watching as the Barian vanished. He blinked, then tilted his head to the left. "She's so much like Mahpari...if I didn't know any better, I'd say she was."

The gray-haired soldier turned and walked away, wondering why he felt so close to that Barian in such a small amount of time.


	4. Chapter 4: Enter, The Dragon

It was insanity. He didn't even remember what had happened. How had he come back? What strange force had brought him back to Earth?

All Vector knew was he was back, and that he was far from human. The only other thing that dwelled in his mind was this fact.

No. He was a Barian now.

And there was nothing he could do about it. He'd had no say in any of this.

Vector raised his hands in front of his eyes and stared at them. He was confused, to say the least, but some of the previous events began to play in his mind. A large, dark figure had loomed over him for quite some time. He'd felt absolutely nothing. He couldn't even feel himself _breathing_ at that moment. All of his senses had gone.

Even his sense of fear.

Then suddenly, a bright flash had illuminated the darkness in the room Vector had been in. He closed his eyes, watching as the rest of the small amount of memories flooded back into his mind. After the flash, he'd felt a power surge through him. A power like he'd never felt before.

Barian Power.

"So...I'm the famous Dragon Attacker that has been prophesied to appear for so long. To take down the Fairy Defender." Vector smirked and chuckled to himself. "If only I knew who the Fairy was. This would make things so much easier. But whatever. I was told I'd know when I saw her...so I suppose everything will work out."

The orange-haired Barian smirked. He looked up, the shadow that was once covering his eyes gone, revealing them to be glowing a bright crimson red. Their color matched the lightning that flashed in the sky over top the dark clouds. Said clouds were almost pitch-black.

In a single motion, he vanished, leaving no trace he was there as the sky flashed again. Thunder boomed afterward, resembling a growl.

A growl similar to a dragon.

XxXxXxXx

Lightning continued to flash outside, and thunder continued to crash and boom. It seemed with every step Durbe took, it got louder and brighter. Not to mention the fact the rain seemed to fall heavier with every sound that followed it.

This was strange weather, even to Durbe. And he'd seen a lot of things. Once, after it had rained, a rainbow had formed. But instead of being able to look at the rainbow, he was actually _standing _in it. Everything had changed colors depending on whatever part of the rainbow it was under, and he had changed to two colors. Half of him was blue, the other half pink. Fortunately, Durbe had had a camera with him, and he'd managed to get a few pictures while he was standing around. Mahpari had been really impressed, not to mention awe-struck.

Another flash of lighting, and another rumble of thunder, only this one shook the house. The power actually managed to spike that time, and it was long enough to cause all the digital clocks to stop and flash a random time. Durbe shuddered, getting a little freaked out by the storm. This had to be the weirdest one by far he'd ever been caught up in.

But it was the only one he'd ever admit to being scared of.

Durbe's smokey-gray eyes traveled around the darkened room until they stopped on the outline of the flashlights. He stood a little higher and grabbed one, then flicked it on. It instantly brightened the room he was standing in, lighting the path for him as he continued to walk. Soon, the beam from the flashlight stopped on the mantle of the chimney.

On top of it sat the two pictures he and Mahpari had gotten before he'd left for a second time.

Durbe couldn't help himself. He walked over, admiring the pictures that were in front of him. The one Mahpari had taken with the camera had actually come out pretty well, much better than he'd expected. It was only blurred in one corner, fuzzing out part of his hair. The rest was perfect. The other one, however, was the best one they had of the two of them. Mizael had done a great job getting them at the right time. At one point, Mahpari had begun to sway a little bit, and when the picture had been taken, it looked like she was snuggled against Durbe in an affectionate matter.

Adorable.

The lightning flashed outside again. Durbe had actually bothered to look up this time, and he had nearly screamed when he'd seen the color of the lighting. It wasn't light blue or white, or even pale green.

No. It was red.

Blood red.

"W-What the hell? Lighting isn't supposed to be red!" Durbe exclaimed, stumbling backwards a bit away from the window. But it hadn't been the lighting itself that had really scared him.

It was the figure that stood outside in the rain.

_What is going on here? First it was the Barian in the forest, then the lighting, and now this figure. It's freaking me out!_

Apparently, it freaked him out so much he couldn't blink. Durbe simply stood there and stared out the window, at the figure, only trembling slightly. He couldn't be sure whether the trembling was from being scared or if it was his body's reaction to being so stiff. But did it matter? Either way was going down some bad road that he did not want to set foot on.

Lighting flashed again, only this time, it knocked the street light out as well. Durbe panicked and, without even realizing it, yelped and dropped the flashlight he'd been holding. It fell to the floor, hitting the button just right and switching off.

_Just my luck_, Durbe thought, growling and attempting to find the item he'd just dropped. As he fumbled around on the floor, the figure outside took his opportunity. Quite unlike the frightened human inside the house, he could see clearly in the dark. He appeared silently, then grabbed Durbe by the waist and cupped his hand over his mouth to silence him. Somehow, the others had managed to sleep through this storm. Even Alit, who went into panic mode during things like this.

The two wrestled around a little bit, but it didn't take long for Durbe to stop struggling. Rather, he about screamed in pain, for the thing that had a hold of him took his bad arm and twisted it. Pain went shooting up it, but he managed to keep the yell down. When he was sure he was going to be knocked out, he was shocked to find out he had somehow managed to appear in a totally random room that was not in his own home.

Durbe gulped, the pain tears from his little injury flowing down his cheeks. He looked up, finally being able to see, and nearly fainted when his smokey-gray eyes met with violet orbs. As Durbe began to look around, he could take in the whole image of the thing in front of him. Light gray skin, grayish-blue hair that spiked up a bit. It was unnerving. There was one feature, however, that really caught his attention. Like the Barian in the forest, this guy had wings. They didn't resemble a butterfly, though.

They resembled a dragon.

Another Barian was standing in front of him.

_How is this possible!?_ Durbe was panicking. _First I met the Barian in the forest, and I **know** she was just like Mahpari. But this guy reminds me of Vector. And I personally don't want to know what he's going to do. _

Durbe didn't get much of a choice. He watched in horror and amazement as the thing in front of him was engulfed by a bright light, and soon, the wings were gone. The hair on him was still spiked, but it had turned orange. His skin color had gone from light gray to Caucasian, like Durbe's own, and a smirk replaced the area where his mouth should have been. Durbe never thought his eyes could go so wide.

Vector was standing right in front of him, perfectly healthy, perfectly alive.

Perfectly evil.


	5. Chapter 5: Reveal The Fairy

_How is this possible!?_ Durbe was panicking. This shouldn't be possible. He'd watched Vector get killed. He had actually witnessed his being stabbed by Kite and Mizael. So how was he still alive?

"Hello, captive," Vector growled, getting in Durbe's face and staring right into his shaking smokey-gray eyes. "How ya been lately?"

"How in the world is this possible? You're _dead_. I watched Mizael and Kite kill you when you killed Mahpari. So tell me. How the hell are you alive?"

"Simple. I was reborn as a Barian." Vector inched a little closer to Durbe's face. When he spoke, his breath smelled foul, but that was the least of Durbe's concerns. He about fainted when he heard what the orange-haired Barian said next.

"Just like your precious little sister."

_That Barian in the forest,_ Durbe thought, small amounts of memories flashing quickly through his head. _She was so similar to Mahpari...no, wait a moment. She wasn't similar! She **is** Mahpari!_ The gray-haired soldier mentally smacked himself in the face. How had he not been able to put the pieces together? Was it just simply the fact she hadn't called him her nii-san?

He could never be sure.

"Mahpari...is a Barian as well?"

"Yes. Quite so, actually. What's really funny is I am part of a long-forgotten prophecy. There are to be two people that wander into the darkness after they are killed, one female, one male. The female is to become the Fairy Protector, who is in charge of defending the Earth and all her friends. The male, however, is to become the Dragon Attacker. He is to destroy all of the Fairy's friends, and then destroy Earth while she is mourning over them." A crooked smile crossed Vector's lips as he laughed. "And it just so happens that _I_ am the Dragon Attacker. So, to start, I'll take you out."

Durbe's eyes went wide. He gulped, then stiffened. When he felt nothing, however, he was surprised.

"I didn't mean _now,_ man," Vector said, acting as though he knew Durbe very well. "I'm going to get the others here first. That way, I won't have to make a pit stop between every killing to go nab another one of you."

Vector vanished, leaving Durbe to stare and think about everything that had just happened in those short six minutes.

XxXxXxXx

The rain had finally stopped falling so heavily, though it was still sprinkling a bit. Mahpari, who had hidden away to avoid soaking her wings, peeked out of the little den she'd crafted out of moss and sticks. She slowly stepped out, deciding she could use a small bath. Her beautiful wings extended a bit and flapped up and down, catching the small rain droplets that continued to flutter from the sky. When she was sure they were clean, Mahpari tucked them neatly behind herself and dashed back into her den.

Mahpari shook her head rapidly and dried her hair off with one of her make-shift towels. She took her wooden brush and ran it through her hair, then tossed the jacket she'd gotten from the house on. It had belonged to Durbe, but she figured he wouldn't mind. Besides, it covered her wings. If he ever found out, he'd be glad to know it was being used for a good purpose. Mahpari crawled back out of her den, watching as some of the animals began to come out of their own hiding places.

And that was about when a shock went through her body. Mahpari's eyes went wide, and she looked up at the sky. She blinked, then gasped and put her hands where her mouth would be.

"Nii-san! He and the others are in trouble!" Mahpari exclaimed, panicking slightly. The animals seemed to sense this, and they stared at her with concern in their eyes. One of them, a small cotton-tail bunny, hopped a little closer to her. Mahpari picked it up, stroking its soft fur. "I'm sorry," she whispered, watching the bunny's ears twitch upon hearing her voice, "but I must go now. My friends are in terrible danger."

The bunny hopped out of Mahpari's grasp, seeming to understand the situation. Mahpari vanished, her older brother's jacket still being warn. She refused to leave it behind, especially now.

Especially when her older brother needed her help.

XxXxXxXx

When Vector appeared, Durbe was asleep. The orange-haired Barian smirked, then tied his other captives to the walls. Somehow, he'd managed to grab Alit, Shark, and Mizael, which only left Gilag and Kite. It didn't matter. He'd get them.

Eventually.

"This is going so smoothly. I can't believe how easy this is! They are really heavy sleepers, I guess." Vector chuckled and finished tying Mizael to the nearest wall. He was amazed that he didn't at least wake the blond up.

But it was just sure luck on his side. Vector was thankful for that, because Mizael surely would've knocked his head off.

"Perfect. I'm almost finished!" The orange-haired Barian vanished, appearing in the house silently. He grabbed Gilag and Kite by their wrists, then flashed back to the place he'd been keeping the others captive. It was actually the room in the basement floor of his base, where he'd kept Mahpari during the first part of the war.

To him, the war was just getting started. Vector tied Kite and Gilag to the pole that was in the center of the room, then laughed like the maniac he was. This woke Durbe, who looked up weakly with a groan.

That was when a flash illuminated the room. Durbe and Vector looked over, staring at the figure that now stood before them. As Durbe took a closer look, he recognized the jacket that was on it. It was his favorite jacket!

Now, for some reason, Alit, Gilag, Shark, Kite, and Mizael had woken up as well. They turned their attention to where Durbe and Vector were staring, confused and curious to know just what was going on.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" Vector asked, growling and taking a step forward.

"Me?" asked a small, female voice. Durbe gasped, recognizing it from yesterday.

It was the same one as the female Barian he'd seen in the forest!

And Durbe couldn't have been more correct. The figure pulled the jacket off herself, revealing her smokey-gray eyes and the cat-like spikes on her hair. Her wings extended, and they sparkled silver in the dim light of the room. Vector's eyes grew wide, and he about screamed in fear.

"You!" he yelled, pointing to the Barian in front of him. "You're the Fairy Protector!"

All eyes were on the Barian before them, watching as she giggled. "You're right," she said. "I am the Fairy. And you, Vector, the Dragon. I knew it as soon as I saw you were alive."

While everyone else was confused as to who this was, Durbe knew exactly who it was that stood before them. His eyes went wide, and he about chocked on his gasp.

"It...it's impossible. I watched you die right there! You were shot and killed!" Durbe exclaimed, extremely freaked out.

"But it isn't impossible, I've come back."

"This is freaking me out. How did this happen?"

"That...is a rather long story."

"How on Earth is that possible? She was shot! We all saw it!" Durbe looked up at the Barian, eyes wide with shock. "How are you back here, Mahpari? How?"

"Mahpari?!" Kite exclaimed, turning and looking at the Barian with shock.

"You mean, she's not dead?" Alit asked.

"What in the world?" Mizael wondered aloud, his eyes growing wide as well.

Mahpari giggled. "It's true. You want proof? I'll show you!"

The room was illuminated with a bright light. Durbe stared in awe, watching as the wings disappeared from Mahpari's body. Her hair grew out a little bit, and, like Vector, her skin color changed to Caucasian. A small smirk appeared on Mahpari's face as she chuckled, crossing her arms.

If Durbe's eyes could go any larger, they would have.

"M-M-Mahpari...you're okay. You're really okay!" Durbe exclaimed, wanting so desperately to hug his little sister. Tears formed at the corners of his eyes when Mahpari looked at him, a broad smile crossing her lips.

"Yes, nii-san. I'm okay." Mahpari turned to stare at Vector, the smile gone from her face and replaced with a glare. "Now, you let them go. Let them go, or I shall hurt you in ways that haven't even been invented yet."

"No way!" Vector yelled. "You want them freed? Then you'll have to beat me first!"

"That can be arranged."

Both of them were momentarily engulfed by bright light as they changed to their Barian Forms, readying themselves for battle. Gilag and Shark were wide-eyed with terror, as were the others.

Their lives literally hung in the balance as they began to fight.


	6. Chapter 6: Fairy VS Dragon, Part 1

"I'll give you one last chance," Mahpari said, jumping out of the way of one of Vector's attacks and hovering in the air. "Let them go free, and I won't have to hurt you."

"Not a chance!" Vector yelled, lunging at Mahpari. She dove out of the way, looking up from her spot on the floor.

"Fine. Have it your way."

They went flying at one another, Mahpari making a pit-stop to grab a sword that had been sitting against the wall and using it to slash Vector's arm. The gray Barian winced, then growled. Taking his hand and raising it into the air, he dug his claws into Mahpari's arm, causing her to cry out. Blood flowed down her arm, staining her snow-white skin a deep, crimson-red.

"How pathetic," Vector hissed, knocking the sword from Mahpari's hand while he had the chance. "You can't even keep me down long enough to end me, even when you have a sword!"

The sword landed on the ground with a clatter as Vector said this. Mahpari stood there, frozen from shock as her opponent took his opportunity. Vector tackled Mahpari, pinning her to the ground and scratching her with his claws.

"Ow! Cut that out!" Mahpari yelled, kneeing Vector off herself. He was sent flying into the air, giving Mahpari the time she needed to get up. She did, only to be knocked back down by Vector, who dive-bombed her down from the sky.

Mahpari glared and grabbed her sword form the ground, sitting up in the process. "Bring it on!" she yelled, eyes fixed on Vector. They had a stare-down for a few moments, but finally, Mahpari sent herself flying at the gray Barian. Both went tumbling to the ground, rolling in a two-man pile-up as they scratched and slashed each other.

Soon, Mahpari was sent flying backwards. She yelped, hitting the wall with a thud. The white Barian growled and stood, brushing herself off and leaping back into battle like nothing had ever happened.

They once again went rolling around. Mahpari forcefully removed herself from the scuffle, slashing Vector across the chest and jumping away before he could attack back. He glared, then pounced on top of Mahpari. The gray Barian dug his claws into her shoulders, causing her to scream in pain. After about five seconds of struggling to get off of one another, Mahpari threw Vector off and stood up wobbly. Her wings drooped a little bit, and she began to pant.

"Is...is that all you got?" Mahpari tried to be threatening. It wasn't exactly working. She glared, her breathing heavy as she stared into the violet orbs of eyes ahead of her. Vector simply chuckled.

"You're so pathetic Mahpari. I can't believe you, of all people, are the Fairy Protector. How can you protect the Earth if you can't even protect yourself?"

"You...You would be surprised...at what I can do...," Mahpari moaned, raising her sword just a little bit. She extended her wings a little, then took off into the sky, ignoring the pain that pulsed in her heart and throughout her nerves as she did.

Vector cackled like the madman he was. "And you would be surprised by what I can do!" he yelled. He jumped up with one swift movement, then grabbed Mahpari by the ankle and yanked her down. Mahpari cried out in pain as she felt the gray Barian that had a hold of her dig his claws into her flesh, leaving deep gashes on her ankle and making it rather hard for her to stand.

This little setback remained as only that, however. It didn't do more than slow Mahpari down a little bit. She growled, then kicked Vector off with her good foot and flew out of the basement. Vector gasped out of shock, then followed her, startling the soldiers that had remained at the base as the two Barians went soaring out the front door.

"Go Mahpari! Kick his butt!" Durbe yelled, hoping his little sister could hear his sound of encouragement. Thankfully, she did, and she didn't even glance back once as she continued into the night sky, leading Vector into a world of hurt.

Well, so she thought, anyway.

Without her knowledge, Vector had vanished. Mahpari about had a heart attack when the gray Barian appeared in front of her, grabbing the sword out of her hand and kicking her down to the ground. Instead, she let out a scream of pain as she landed on her torn ankle. Said scream was so loud that it alerted the people that were still inside Durbe's base.

Inside, the general looked up, her long, brown hair moving swiftly with her. "What the hell is going on out there?" she asked, motioning with her hand for a few of the soldiers that were with her to follow her. They did, grabbing rifles and grenades from the wall, just in case they had to kill something.

When they got outside, they were shocked to see what they did. The general gasped, her eyes growing wide with shock and terror. She couldn't believe what she was looking at.

"How? I had heard they were both dead. Then how are they back?"

"Who?" one of the soldiers asked curiously. The general turned back around, a fearful look in her eyes.

"Vector and Mahpari. I had heard they'd both been killed."

"But, how do you know that's them up there?"

"Take a look at their hair!"

She was right. The two Barians in the air were easily recognizable by their hair, Vector's by his style and Mahpari's by the orange tips on her cat-like spikes. It was unbelievable. They were alive, and now, they were more powerful than ever.

This was complete and total insanity.

Mahpari struggled to sit up. She weakly looked over at Vector's old base, then turned and stared at the soldiers that had grenades. The girl extended her wings and flew over to them, grabbing some of the grenades and taking the pins out of them. Before anyone could stop her, she'd already thrown them towards Vector's base.

The explosion that came from them was so intense, everyone actually had to cover their eyes. On the inside, however, each of the captives let out a terrified yell. Mahpari had somehow managed to pick up on Durbe's yelp of fear before she'd heard anyone else's.

_Sorry, nii-san,_ Mahpari thought. _ It was the only thing I could think of that would blow the ground floor away._

Vector looked up in shock once the light faded away, his hair still being whipped around in circles from the wind. He scowled, then looked around, seeing that yet another huge, thick dust cloud had emerged from the explosion. A thought came creeping into his mind. When Vector was sure he could make it work, he vanished, appearing suddenly in what was left of his basement in his base.

And sure enough, there sat Durbe, still tied to the wall and coughing heavily from the smoke.

_Perfect!_ Vector thought. He snuck over, untying Durbe from his miniature prison. The gray-haired soldier gasped, taking in a huge gulp of smoke and ending up choking on it before he could cry out for help.

Just as Vector had planned.

The gray Barian vanished again, this time appearing outside of the base. The smoke had cleared from the outside, and everyone could see clearly again. Now was his chance. And he was going to take it before it decided to get away from him.

"Hey Mahpari! Take a look at this!"

In an instant, Mahpari was looking at where Vector's voice had come from. And man, was she not happy to see what she saw.

Vector stood there, with Durbe in his grasp, and a claw pointed to his throat.


	7. Chapter 7: Fairy VS Dragon, Part 2

Mahpari never thought her eyes could go so wide. She blinked, then narrowed her eyes and scowled. "Let go of my nii-san!" she yelled, balling her hands into fists and raising one up a bit. "Or I shall hurt you in ways that have not even been invented yet!"

Vector, however, simply laughed. "Like you could even lay a claw on me! You have a torn ankle which you can barely stand on, not to mention the little injury to your arm. By the way, where _did_ that sword go off to, anyway?"

Now that, Mahpari was not sure of. She tilted her head to the left, trying to remember where she had put it. It only took her two seconds, however, to figure it out. A large, bright gleam came from Vector's hand, and in it, he clutched the sword that had been missing. Mahpari gasped when he put the point to Durbe's chest, waiting to stab him with it.

"Okay, Mahpari," Vector growled, grabbing Durbe a little tighter when he began to struggle. "You have two options. Surrender and give up, and I'll leave your brother alone. Or, you can choose to attack, resulting in his death."

"W-What?" Durbe exclaimed, glancing up with a fearful look in his eyes. He switched his gaze over to Mahpari, who was almost shaking in fear. "Don't listen to him Mahpari! Attack him!"

Mahpari twitched, then shook her head no. "Are you insane?" she asked. "I'm not taking that kind of a chance! No way, no how!"

"Wise girl," Vector said. He watched as Mahpari's wings drooped, but he did not let go of Durbe. Instead, he grabbed the gray-haired soldier by his bad arm and clutched it so tightly, he let out a scream of pain.

This ticked Mahpari off. She didn't move, however, for fear she may cause Vector to stab her brother. Instead, she winced, and watched from the sideline as Durbe took his good arm and drew it forward a little bit.

What happened next stunned her, to say the least.

Durbe brought his arm back hard, elbowing Vector in the gut and breaking free. He raced away at the fastest speed he could muster, (Which wasn't much, recall the injury his glasses gave him a while back.) and yanked one of the rifles from one of the soldier's arms.

"Nii-san, how did you..."

"That doesn't matter now, Mahpari. Just keep your guard up!"

Mahpari didn't need to be told twice. She whipped around just in time, smacking Vector in the face with a clawed hand and leaving scratch marks on the side of his face. Vector flinched, then growled and grabbed Mahpari by the wrist. He swung her around, then sent her flying into the air.

Thankfully, she caught herself. Mahpari flapped her wings, then back-flipped and simply hovered in the air. When Vector decided to try lunging at her, she dropped down and, ignoring the pain in her ankle with every step she took, raced away on foot. Vector copied her, chasing after her as though she were a dog who had escaped from her leash.

Mahpari glanced back once, then slowed down a bit. To everyone else, it looked like she was being a total idiot. But soon, they understood. Mahpari kept running, allowing Vector to catch up little by little. Just as he came into reaching distance, Mahpari literally _ran _up a tree stalk, running upside-down for a second and watching as Vector ran straight into the tree.

"Ha ha," Mahpari said, landing gracefully and watching as Vector dizzily stood up. He'd fallen down as soon as he'd hit the tree.

And right now, he was not happy.

They spoke not a word as they took back off into the air. Mahpari slung her fist Vector's way, hitting him right in the jaw and sending him backwards a little bit.

Mistake. Big mistake.

Before Mahpari could retract her arm, Vector had a hold of it. The insanity blazed in his eyes as they glowed a bright red, and he glared intensely at the young Barian that hovered in front of him and struggled to get free from his grasp.

Durbe gasped and went wide-eyed when he heard his little sister scream in pain. He didn't waste one second more taking aim with his rifle and shooting Vector with it, shocking everyone as he came tumbling down from the sky. Mahpari floated there, frozen from shock. She blinked, then stared at where her older brother stood.

_Nii-san...?_

While Mahpari was stuck in her thoughts, Vector took his opportunity to attack Durbe, scratching him a few times and managing to pin him to the ground. This, somehow, caught Mahpari's attention.

"Hey!" she yelled, dropping down to the ground. "Get your hands off my nii-san!"

Vector said nothing, only turned around slowly. The gray Barian and the white Barian met eye-to-eye, but only long enough to distract one another for a second or two. Mahpari watched in fear as Vector finally got up, revealing her older brother.

There was just one problem, though. He wasn't moving.

"N-Nii-san?" Mahpari stammered, attempting to wake Durbe up. He didn't stir, didn't even twitch. This was beginning to worry Mahpari. The white Barian slowly walked over, kneeling down next to him and running a hand through his hair. "Nii-san? Are you okay?"

No answer.

Mahpari was panicking now. She climbed on top of her older brother, laying on him like she did when she got scared of thunderstorms back at their house. "Nii-san, c'mon. This isn't funny anymore. Get up."

Nothing. Not even a twitch.

The answer became clear to Mahpari in an instant. She gently got off of Durbe, then stood up, her wings folded neatly behind her. The white Barian simply stood there for a moment, but soon, she turned around, her eyes glowing bright pink as she glared at Vector.

"You killed him!" Mahpari yelled, tears streaking down her cheeks. "You killed my nii-san!"

Vector simply let out a laugh. "Bingo!" he said, dancing around in a little circle. "You got it kid! You got it!"

Mahpari, however, was far from amused. She looked around, trying to find the sword that had been at her brother's chest earlier. When she did, she lunged at it, picking it up and holding it in a ready position.

_Killing my nii-san will not go unpunished!_ Mahpari thought, lifting the sword up a little higher. She narrowed her eyes, which were still glowing pink, and changed forward. Vector tried to jump away, but it was no use.

In a matter of seconds, Mahpari had him pinned to the ground.

Mahpari glared menacingly, sword in hand and pinned right at Vector's chest. "Now," Mahpari hissed, her grip tightening on the sword. "You've done horrid things to me and my friends. You killed my nii-san, right in front of me and everything. Today, this ends. Right here, right now."

Vector simply glared, hoping to intimidate her a little more. "And how is it going to end?"

"Like this!" Mahpari yelled, shoving the sword in front of her and thrusting it into Vector. The gray Barian yelped in pain, somehow managing to shove the white one off himself. Mahpari glared, then yanked the sword out and walked away. All of the soldiers that were standing out there were stunned by what they'd just witnessed.

Meanwhile, Mahpari was inside Vector's old base. She took her claws and went walking around the room, cutting everyone free and being thankful Vector had been dumb enough to only tie them with rope.

"Mahpari, is is over?" Kite asked, looking at Mahpari from where he sat. She nodded, not making eye contact with anyone.

Mizael tilted his head to the left, watching as Mahpari changed to her human form and sat down. Tears began to flow down her cheeks as she stared at the floor.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Alit asked, taking a few steps toward Mahpari. She glanced up at him, gripping the fabric of her pants a little tighter.

"Nii-san...was killed by Vector," Mahpari squeaked, beginning to cry like a small child.


	8. Chapter 8: Homeward Bound

Mahpari continued to cry, trembling slightly from her upset. She looked up slightly, then ducked her head back down and sobbed harder.

"Mahpari...," Kite whispered. He walked a little closer to the girl, then placed a hand on her shoulder. At first, Mahpari was freaked out. But when it registered in her panicked mind that is was only Kite, she threw her arms around him and started to cry into his jacket.

The others simply stayed put.

Alit looked up at the sky. Dark, ominous clouds were forming around them, signifying a thunderstorm was approaching them. The green-eyed soldier turned and faced the others, a concerned look on his face.

"We should probably get to some shelter," he said, pointing to the sky. "Otherwise, we're gonna get drenched."

"Good idea." Gilag nodded in agreement as he said this. He jumped out of the basement in a swift motion, then extended a hand and pulled Alit up when he took it. Mizael copied his ally, as did Shark, and not long after that Kite did the same. Mahpari, on the other hand, would not budge. She couldn't get rid of the fact that she would be alone for the rest of her life now.

Kite tilted his head to the right in curiosity. "Mahpari? You don't want to get wet, do you?"

The gray-haired girl shook her head no.

"Then c'mon," Kite said, extending a hand toward her as Gilag had for the others. Mahpari looked up dully, then gingerly grabbed the blond and teal-haired man's hand. He hoisted her up, and he knelt to her level and pulled her into an affectionate hug.

Mahpari blinked in confusion. "Kite, what are you..."

"No, shush. It's okay, Mahpari. I know you're upset, but trust me. It's okay." Kite ran his hand up and down Mahpari's back in a soothing fashion. The girl sank into the embrace, not even flinching when Kite lifted her up. Rather, she smiled.

She would never be alone, after all.

Little rain droplets began to come from the sky. Mahpari looked to her right, her eyes saddening when she saw her older brother's still and motionless body. They lit back up, however, when she saw the jacket that was laying next to him.

_It must've gotten blown out of the base when I threw those grenades,_ Mahpari thought. She hopped from Kite's grip, ignoring his startled yelp as she raced to where the jacket lay. When she got there, she instantly picked it up and held it close. And she could not believe it.

The jacket still smelled like Durbe.

"Nii-san," Mahpari whimpered. She slid the jacket on and buttoned it a bit, then shifted her gaze over to where Durbe lay. For some reason, she felt the need to go back over there and sit by him one last time before the rain began to pour down on them.

So, that's what she did. Mahpari walked over to Durbe's side, then plopped down by him and stared up at the clouds that passed overhead.

"Mahpari! What are you doing?"

Mahpari turned her head toward the source of the voice. It turned out to be Mizael who had called out to her, and he had a look of concern on his face, similar to the one Alit had had before.

"I'll catch up with you! I'm a little busy right now!"

Mizael didn't seem to be convinced, yet he saw no point in arguing. Instead, he nodded and shrugged, then turned and followed after the others. Mahpari watched as they all walked into the base. She simply sighed before laying down, placing her head on Durbe's chest.

And about as fast as she'd put it there, she had it back up in the air. No, it couldn't have been true, could it? He couldn't be alive, could he?

Apparently, he could be, for there was no mistake in the sound Mahpari had heard only seconds ago. She had unmistakably heard Durbe's heartbeat. No doubt about it.

Her older brother was alive.

Mahpari gasped, then about screamed when Durbe opened his eyes. They met eye-to-eye, staring at one another as a large smile crossed Mahpari's lips. "Nii-san!" she exclaimed, yanking her older brother up and throwing her arms around him in a hug.

"Be careful, Mahpari!" Durbe said, holding his little sister close and ruffling her hair. "My arm is still in bad condition, you know."

"Oh, right." Mahpari giggled, leaning her head against Durbe's chest again and not caring if the rain began to pelt them. "Sorry. I forgot."

Durbe chuckled slightly, noticing Mahpari was wearing his favorite jacket. _So that's where that went, _ he thought, giving his little sister a small kiss on the forehead. "It's okay, Mahpari," he whispered. "It's okay."

Mahpari snuggled closer as Durbe lifted her up, beginning to walk towards his base in order to get them out of the rain. "I'm just glad you're okay," he could hear her whisper as they walked away.

XxXxXxXx

Mizael sat next to the window, watching as the rain poured down outside. He and the others had gotten a little wet, and do to the fact he had longer hair than any of them, he'd been taking a lot longer of a time to get dry.

But it didn't matter to him. He was more concerned about Mahpari, who still hadn't come in yet. If she was really still sitting out there in the rain right now, something surely must be wrong with her mind. While he understood she was upset, he thought it was about time she come in, at least until the rain stopped.

"Mahpari...what are you doing out there? Watching the rain or something?" Mizael wondered out loud. He sighed and folded his arms in front of himself, then lay his head down, simply continuing to stare outside. It appeared that with every drop, the rain began to fall harder, which worried him greatly.

And that was about when he saw it.

The set of figures outside that was walking towards the base.

Instantly, Mizael jolted up, his sky-blue eyes staring intently at the figures. He couldn't believe it, and he was certain the others would call him crazy.

He didn't care.

"Guys! Guys! Look outside! Look outside right now!" Mizael yelled, pointing to the window.

"Yeah, we see it Mizael. It's just rain," Alit replied, not bothering to look from his window.

"No, you simpleton! Look out this one!"

Alit glared, not liking being called a simpleton, and got up to look out the window. When he did, he screamed, making the others jolt up in shock as he began pointing outside like a wild man. The others noticed and, when they walked over there, they too went absolutely insane.

Durbe was outside, carrying Mahpari as he did his best to run inside.

"Durbe and Mahpari!?" Shark yelled, pushing his way through the crowd and staring out the window.

"How's this possible?" Gilag asked, his eyes wide in fear. "I thought Durbe was dead!"

"Maybe...he faked it?" Alit suggested.

Kite snickered. "He doesn't seem like the kind of person to do that."

"Well, maybe he doesn't seem like it...but you never know."

"True."

They all watched as the door to the base opened. In stepped Durbe, soaking wet and holding his equally drenched sister. Mahpari was latched onto him in a hug, and it was pretty obvious she did not want to let go.

"Well, whad'ya know? He's alright after all!" Alit exclaimed, walking up to Durbe and smacking him on the shoulder.

Too bad for him, it had to be his bad shoulder.

Durbe winced, then growled at Alit. "Bad shoulder, don't touch," he said.

"Oh, r-right, sorry!" Alit squeaked, rushing away like a little kid.

Everyone watched as Mahpari jumped from her spot on her older brother, landing on her good ankle before setting her bad one down. The claw marks had healed mostly, which no one could understand, but they were not yet fully healed.

And Mahpari was not taking that chance.

"Does this mean we've gotta go on another train to get home?" Mahpari asked suddenly, obviously forgetting everything else around her. Durbe smiled and ruffled her wet hair, making her stick her tongue out at him.

"We probably should. It's the safest way to get home right now."

"Okie dokie then."

"But we are not leaving now," Mizael said, standing and crossing his arms. "Unless you would like to get soaked again."

Mahpari glanced out the window. "Hmm, good point. Then, does that mean we're just gonna sleep here?"

"More than likely."

"Fine with me. I don't care, as long as I have my nii-san," Mahpari said, latching onto Durbe and pulling him to the ground. He didn't seem to mind it as his little sister draped his jacket over them both so they could sleep, regardless of the fact they were right in the middle of the center room.

It didn't matter to him. He still had his little sister.

That was all he cared about at the moment.


	9. Chapter 9: Together At Last

When Mahpari awoke in the morning, she had no idea where she was at. This freaked her out for a moment, but when she sat up and looked around, she knew on instant the base was far behind her.

"Whoa...where are we?" Mahpari whispered, looking at everyone curiously.

"We're on the train, silly."

Mahpari nearly screamed. She turned around instead, staring into Alit's forest-green eyes. Relief washed over her when she learned that everyone else must be on as well.

"Oh. When did we get on?"

"Few hours ago, when the rain cleared up. And I still ain't gone to sleep!"

"Why?"

Alit chuckled, running a hand through Mahpari's silky hair. "Someone needs to be looking out for you, goofball. Otherwise, your older brother will have a fit when he wakes up."

Upon hearing this, Mahpari jolted up. "Where is my nii-san?" she asked. Alit simply pointed to the seat in front of Mahpari. She blinked, then looked to the left, where a soft snoring sound was coming from.

Sure enough, Durbe was sleeping in the seat ahead of her.

"Oh. Heh, I knew that."

"Sure."

Mahpari giggled and turned around to continue staring at Durbe. The gray-haired soldier's breathing was steady and calm, signifying he was sleeping peacefully. Mahpari smiled, then ran a hand through her older brother's bangs.

For a while, Mahpari simply sat in her seat on the train. But after a few moments, she got up and jumped into the seat that was directly across from Durbe. Alit raised an eyebrow, his forest-green eyes following the gray-haired Barian as she pounced into the seat with her older brother. He stirred, but he did not wake up.

That was exactly what Mahpari had hoped for. She took the opportunity to change to her Barian Form, laying next to Durbe and draping her wing over him like a blanket.

This, however, woke Durbe up. He blinked, staring at Mahpari. She was not looking back at him. Her attention was diverted to the window, where she was looking at the scenery. Judging by the trees, they were just about at the other train station.

Scratch that. They were at the other train station.

Durbe sat up, careful not to touch his little sister's delicate fairy wing. Se turned around, giggling and throwing her arms around her older brother's neck when he sat up. "Nii-san," she whispered, nuzzling against Durbe's chest affectionately.

A small chuckle escaped from Durbe's lips. "You're such a goof," he whispered into Mahpari's ear. She giggled again, slightly tightening her hold.

The train finally pulled to a stop. Mahpari changed to her human form, a broad smile appearing on her lips as she grabbed her older brother's hand. Durbe's gaze softened as he put a little pressure on the gray-haired girl's left hand.

That was about when he noticed she was still wearing his jacket.

A small smile crossed Alit's lips. He chuckled, staring at the adorableness the two siblings were showing off. The others, who had since woken up and were staring intently, had smiles on their faces as well. Kite especially was amazed at the bond Mahpari and Durbe had with one another.

Both siblings pulled away from one another, staring into the pair of smokey-gray eyes that were across from themselves. Since Durbe's glasses had been broken, it had become easier to see his eyes.

Mahpari took her small hands and put them around her older brother's again. A smile appeared on Durbe's face as he laughed, allowing his younger sister to drag him off the train. The Barian raced away, Mizael and Kite following the two siblings as they headed towards their house. Alit, Gilag, and Shark simply smiled before they turned around to head back to their own homes. Shark was fairly sure his sister was throwing a tantrum over his fail to return on time like he'd promised.

But it didn't matter. He was coming home now, so all was well.

Meanwhile, below the hill, Mahpari was still dragging Durbe behind herself. Mizael was trailing after them, as was Kite, and both were totally out of breath. They were amazed Durbe was holding up so well, considering the fact he still had some problems with his injured leg.

They went around the corner, not bothering to slow down. If anything, it seemed they sped up a bit, causing Durbe to wince.

"C'mon, nii-san!" Mahpari said, glancing back at her older brother with a giggle.

Durbe had to force a smile in order to hide his pain. "I'm trying Mahpari, but my leg is about to give out!"

Thankfully, Mahpari's speed boost got them to the front door very quickly. She opened it and raced in, still dragging her older brother with her, and jumped down on the couch with him. Kite and Mizael raced in a few seconds later, panting heavily and gasping for breath like it was going out of style. Mahpari giggled upon seeing this.

"Can we maybe...not go...so fast...next time?" Kite panted out like a dog.

"Okay," Mahpari replied, picking the remote up from the coffee table. She turned on the TV, flicking through the channels until she settled on a random comedy. The gray-haired Barian smiled and took Durbe's jacket off herself, then laid it on top of them both. She leaned against her older brother, a happy smile crossing her lips as she stared at the TV with the others.

XxXxXxXx

**Yeah, I know it's short. Sorry. I wanted a few fluffy moments between the siblings. But the next chapter will be much longer, I promise. Until then, my peeps, and don't forget to review!**


	10. Chapter 10: Creating New Happiness

Many hours had passed since Mizael, Kite, Durbe, and Mahpari had first walked through the front door that day. They had done lots of things with each other, which included a literal pancake fight. (It had been Mahpari's idea, when she first dropped one on the floor and gotten smacked in the face with it on accident by Mizael, who had tried to pick it up.)

That, to say the least, had resulted in a few hours of cleaning, as batter had gotten strewn everywhere as soon as they had run out of actual pancakes. Mahpari had not been patient enough to wait for them to be done, as she'd shown by taking the mixer and using it to toss batter onto Kite's face.

It had pretty much spiraled downhill from there.

But they didn't really mind. Every moment they spent together was a good one. Mizael, unfortunately, had had to leave. He'd said it was time he go back to his own house, since Mahpari was safe and all and he'd technically fulfilled his duties. Mahpari had stuck her tongue out on that note, considering the fact that was untrue until she'd been brought back to life by Hart.

Five minutes after Mizael had left, that's what had flown into Mahpari's mind. She'd even brought it up to Kite, how she'd seen his little brother when she was temporarily trapped in the Void of the Afterlife. This managed to pull a few tears from the blond and teal-haired man's eyes, and Mahpari had embraced him in a hug to calm him down. Thankfully, this tactic had worked.

She wouldn't have been able to cope with it if he'd began to cry as well.

Now, the three of them had completely calmed down. Mahpari had taken Durbe's jacket and tossed it over the two of them and was laying on top of him. Durbe was sprawled out on the couch in an attempt to relax. For some reason, it had not happened until his little sister had come and pounced on top of him. This had caused his leg and his arm to hurt a bit, but he ignored it and decided to just enjoy Mahpari's company. Kite, on the other hand, had taken his place on the recliner. Mahpari was beginning to wonder if that was his home inside their home.

If it was, Mahpari thought that to be adorable.

"So..."

Durbe and Kite looked at Mahpari, watching as she began to play with her older brother's jacket. She smiled gently, then sat up a bit, still sitting on top of her older brother. "What all did you guys do while I was...you know..."

"Dead?" Kite finished. He instantly gained a death glare from Durbe, but Mahpari had only rolled her eyes.

"Yeah. What did you do while I was dead?"

"Well, first we mourned," Durbe said, gaining a giggle from his little sister. "Then, we went off to fight Vector for a second time."

"I know that. I was here for that. I mean here, what did you do here, while I was gone?"

"Oh, here. Nothing, really."

Mahpari sighed, then nodded. That was understandable. She figured they would have done anything to try and take her death off their minds. The gray-haired Barian stretched and yawned, then shook herself off. "I see. Well, I'm tired. Bed time. Now."

A small chuckle came from Durbe. He lifted Mahpari up, giving her a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Okay, fine. You coming, Kite?"

"Nah," Kite replied, flicking through the channels on the TV. "You go on ahead. I'll catch up later."

"M'kay."

Durbe walked up the stairs, taking his uniform off while Mahpari raced to her room to change. The gray-haired soldier threw on one of his white long-sleeved shirts and a pair of shorts, then watched as Mahpari came dashing around the corner in her Hello Kitty pajamas. She watched as her older brother laughed, ruffling her hair when he walked over to her.

"Ready for bed, little miss Kitty?"

"Sure."

Both laughed as they jumped into Durbe's bed. For once, he wasn't going to try to make his little sister go to her own bed. Usually, he only let her sleep in his when she was scared of the storms outside or the power outages.

But this was a total exception.

Durbe pulled the blankets up on them both, allowing Mahpari to snuggle against him. She closed her eyes delicately, smiling softly.

"Good night, nii-san," Mahpari whispered. Durbe chuckled as he held his little sister in a gentle embrace.

"Good night, my little moon fairy."

He reached over, then turned the lamp off, flooding the room with darkness. It was fine with Mahpari for once. She had her older brother with her to protect her.

And he was all she needed to shield her from the darkness.

XxXxXxXx

The dim rays of the sun that had managed to break free of the clouds still hanging overhead were shining through the window, illuminating the room a bright orangeish-yellow. Mahpari's smokey-gray eyes opened slowly, and she looked around, taking in the brightened scenery.

It was about then that she heard the snoring sound behind her. In an instant, Mahpari turned over, panic going throughout her whole body. But she realized it was only Durbe, calming down at once when his eyes opened, staring into her identical ones. Durbe smiled softly and sat up, watching as Mahpari did the same. He ruffled her hair, then simply sat in the spot on the bed.

However, Mahpari was still overwhelmed her older brother was alive and okay. She didn't just want to sit around, she wanted to run around with him.

So that's what she did. Mahpari grabbed Durbe's wrist, then began to drag him away. The gray-haired soldier let out a startled yelp when they went rushing down the stairs, waking Kite in the process. He didn't really care, however, since he'd been trying to wake up for a few hours now and that hadn't been working too well.

The two siblings bounced onto the couch, and Mahpari was instantly attached to her older brother's arm. Normally, Durbe wouldn't have minded. He loved it when his little sister jumped onto him.

This time was different. Mahpari had pushed up on his left sleeve, revealing his wrist. In an instant, Mahpari could feel cuts. Many of them, each deep and meant to torture. She sat up, then looked at Durbe with curiosity.

"Nii-san, what happened to you?"

"What?" Durbe asked, looking down at his little sister. "What do you mean?"

"The cuts. How'd you get them?"

Now, Durbe looked down at his wrist. He remembered how he'd taken the knife to it after Mahpari had died. And quite frankly, he'd been hoping she wouldn't find out.

Too late for that now.

"Mahpari...when you died, I was so full of grief. I couldn't control myself. I guess I lost it..."

"You did this!?" Mahpari exclaimed, tightening her grip on the fabric of Durbe's shirt sleeve. Her smokey-gray eyes were shaking violently as she stared up at her older brother. Durbe just turned away, too embarrassed to look the girl in the eye.

"I'm so sorry, Mahpari..."

"Nii-san..."

The two simply sat there for a moment. In the background, Kite was awestruck, having not learned of this until just now. He watched as Mahpari pounced on Durbe in a hug however, keeping his eyes pinned on her as the gray-haired Barian embraced her still human brother.

"Nii-san...I hate seeing you get hurt. The thought you'd ever hurt yourself...pains me greatly," Mahpari whimpered, burying her face in Durbe's chest.

Durbe had a few tears going down his cheeks. He stroked Mahpari's hair, holding her by the waist with his good arm. "I know, my little moon fairy. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I ever even thought of doing this to myself. I don't even know what happened!"

Mahpari didn't move from her spot. Rather, she climbed on top of her older brother's lap, adjusting herself so her arms were wrapped around his neck and her head was resting on his shoulder. Tears streaked down her cheeks as she sat up a bit, whispering in Durbe's ear.

"I love you Durbe, nii-san."

There was a sudden and awkward silence in the room. Kite found himself to be smiling when Durbe actually began to cry, and couldn't help but feel touched. For him, he was basically looking at a mirrored image of himself and Hart from a different universe.

After a few more minutes of basically being glued to one another, Mahpari and Durbe pulled away. Each of them had tears going down their cheeks as they stared into each other's eyes.

Durbe ruffled Mahpari's hair, then stood and lifted her up. She laughed like the child she was, latching onto her brother to make sure she had a hold of him.

"C'mon," Mahpari whispered. "Let's take our minds off this and go back to the swing. I miss it."

"Alright."

Kite watched as Durbe lifted Mahpari up, then followed them as they went out the door. Mahpari, however, had other plans. She jumped from her spot on her older brother, then went darting down the hill, causing the two soldiers behind her to yelp and dart after her in panic.

"Mahpari! Wait up, will ya?" Kite yelled, trying his best to keep up.

Mahpari glanced back, then giggled and jumped into the swing. She watched as Durbe and Kite came over to her, panting heavily.

"Don't...do that...again!" Durbe said, finally straightening up.

"Whatever," Mahpari retorted, standing on top of the swing and giggling.

Kite smiled gently, remembering how Hart used to do things like that. The blond and teal-haired soldier walked in front of the gray-haired Barian, then chuckled and ruffled her hair. She shook herself off, then simply sat down.

And then, just like that, she was on them both in a hug.

"I love you guys," Mahpari whispered. Durbe ran a hand through his little sister's hair, while Kite was just enjoying the hug.

At last, all was normal. All was calm.

All was alive.

**END**


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